August 2014 Departure...Info Required

It is hot! That is the busiest time, but your bed strategy will work even then. Start each day early to avoid the head, and an early stop will make it easier to find a bed. Some albergues close at the end of October, but you will know about them by calling ahead. In places with more than one albergue, one is usually open.
Buen camino.

If taking longer means shorter walking days then accommodation in August shouldn't be a problem.

Weather is mostly perfect in August. Start and stop early and enjoy lovely long warm summer evenings outside the albergues. But do take warmer clothes for when you are up in the fells of O Cebreiro as it can be really cold and wet there as it was for me this summer. It's certainly VERY busy, with loads of annoying cyclists too, but accommodation isn't a problem as for those arriving late, sports halls etc are opened up. I never once had to sleep in a sports hall though. Only in two places did I see people sleeping outdoors because everything was totally full and even then, it was only for pilgrims that arrived after 3pm. Oh...and if you are around O Cebreiro in August, either get there very early and join the long queue for the albergue or make a booking at one of the inns in advance.

I travelled late October to early December last year. A lot of Albergues were closed, particularly after mid November when the weather got cooler, because there were a lot fewer pilgrims than in summer. There was only rarely a problem finding a place to eat. There was never a problem finding an albergue with beds available. The caveat is that I mainly had to plan to stay in the larger towns.

The pilgrims office in St Jean provided a list with albergues and dates of operation. It proved to be very useful for planning.